The U.K.’s top competition regulator directed Meta Platforms Inc., formerly Facebook , to sell social-media animated-images company Giphy, saying its acquisition could limit competition among platforms and U.K. advertisers.
Facebook bought Giphy in May 2020 for $315 million, according to documents published as part of a review of the deal by the Competition and Markets Authority that has been under way since last year. The regulator said Tuesday that the deal, among other things, had removed Giphy as a potential challenger in the display-advertising market, in line with its provisional findings issued in August.
